1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to phonographs and particularly to the types of phonographs known as toy phonographs.
2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Toy phonographs, that is phonographs such as for use as talking voice boxes, such as for talking dolls or other types of so-called talking toys, such as talking alarm clocks, are well known. An example of such prior art toy phonographs is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,589,735; 3,411,790; 3,538,638; 3,208,755; 3,055,664; 3,467,393; 3,823,946; 3,401,942; 3,208,755; 3,544,115; 3,784,210; 3,984,111; Canadian Pat. No. 707,932; and British Pat. No. 828,608, by way of example. The entire field with respect to toy phonographs has been quite active with the primary motivation, because of their use in toys, being economics, efficiency and size so as to provide a practical commercial embodiment for use in economically viable children's toys. Thus, the above patents, provided by way of example, merely disclose a quantitatively small amount of the large volume of different types of toy phonographs existent in the prior art with the difference between the various prior art toy phonographs in an attempt to provide toy phonographs which are economically viable being relatively narrow since apparently minor improvements can provide a significant improvement in efficiency and economics in the area of toy phonographs.
Prior art devices known to applicant in which both sides of a record are played back by separate playback means have either involved conventional automatic record changing mechanisms such as in expensive high fidelity equipment, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,506,925 and 2,858,374, or elaborate mechanical interconnection such as disclosed in 3,538,638, whereas the dual record toy phonograph described in my parent application, U.S. Ser. No. 747,484, filed Dec. 6, 1976, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,078,808, as well as herein, is an economic and efficient phonograph for enabling two separate phonograph records to be employed in a talking toy. Thus, in my phonograph referred to above, the entire phonograph record playing surface is available for reproduction of a recorded message thereby providing a reasonable length message as opposed to prior art attempts to provide a plurality of messages on a common phonograph record playing surface with each of such messages necessarily being of short duration since they occupied only a portion of the entire phonograph record playing surface.
In addition, control of the drive mechanism of prior art toy phonographs employing leaf spring contact switches adjacent the end of the record, including that used in the above parent application, requires that electrical contact be broken at the exact moment when the needle reaches the end of the record. In the instance of the phonograph described in the above parent application, it is imperative that the needle arm protrusion pop in the hole in the lift bar at the correct time since the needle arm should only engage one record at a time on the common turntable. This requirement, if not met, could cause the end of the record to be reached and not turn off or could cause premature turn off before the end of the record. These disadvantages of the prior art are overcome by the present invention.